[In]visible [in]tangibles: Visual portraits of the business élite
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors construct a framework from art theory to interpret portraits of the business elite and their associated intangibles, and identify four sets of rhetorical codes in portraiture: physical, dress, spatial and interpersonal.
Abstract: Visual portraits of the business elite are widely disseminated, and form significant sites for communicating messages regarding leadership and associated intellectual, symbolic and social intangibles, yet have been neglected in accounting research. At the same time, accounting for intangibles is recognised to be inadequate. This inter-disciplinary article constructs a framework from art theory to interpret portraits of the business elite and their associated [in]visible [in]tangibles. Four sets of rhetorical codes in portraiture are identified: physical, dress, spatial and interpersonal. Illustrative portraits from annual reports and the media are analysed to indicate how [in]visible [in]tangibles are portrayed through visual rhetoric.
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TL;DR: In this paper, a set of photos of university organisation taken originally as a part of another field research project are re-read and narrated by a cosmopolitan academic, and complementing the images with critical narratives about some of the personal experiences of living and working under intensifying control and managerialism.
Abstract: There is a long history of using researcher-generated photography to complement verbal descriptions of culture in ethnographic research In the recent discussions, photos are no longer treated as authentic or accurate descriptions of the field, but are instead understood as particular representations of organisational life As manufactured visual artefacts, photos reflect the conditions surrounding their production within ethnographic practice, but at the same time their ethnographicness is contingent on the shifting interpretations and uses of images in scholarly representations The purpose of this paper is to add to the emerging body of performative visual ethnography by re-reading and narrating a set of photos of university organisation taken originally as a part of another field research project By presenting the photos depicting the organisation from the viewpoint of a cosmopolitan academic, and complementing the images with critical narratives about some of the personal experiences of living and working under a regime of intensifying control and managerialism, a multi-modal representation of ‘how it feels being there’ is offered The challenge of photographic ethnography is to retain the specific sensitivities related to the visual format while at the same time being able to spin an accompanied narrative that enables a creative dialogue between the pictures and the words
1 citations
Cites background or methods from "[In]visible [in]tangibles: Visual p..."
...Although there is an increasing interest towards the use of visual materials in organisation studies (Ray and Smith, 2012; Guthey and Jackson, 2005; Davison, 2010), the theoretical and methodological discussion about the contribution of photos to ethnographic studies of organisational communities has so far been relatively limited (Kunter and Bell, 2006; Warren, 2005)....
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...Finally, visual research can analyse the composition and meaning of existing archival and media pictures (Dougherty and Kunda, 1990; Davison, 2010; Guthey and Jackson, 2005)....
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TL;DR: In this article , the authors explore how public audit institutions establish themselves as distinct actors on the public stage through communication practices, focusing on the journey of the European Court of Auditors (ECA).
Abstract: PurposeThis paper explores how public audit institutions establish themselves as distinct actors on the public stage through communication practices. By focussing on the journey of the European Court of Auditors (ECA), this paper addresses the following research question: how does a transnational audit institution construct its actorhood through visual communication practices?Design/methodology/approachUsing the theoretical framework of actorhood theory and inspired by the visual accounting methodology, this study explores the ECA actorhood journey through the visual analysis of front pages of its official journal (ECA Journal) from its inception in 2009 up to 2019. The visual analysis is conducted through content analysis and a two-step cluster analysis.FindingsBy showing how combinations of different visual artefacts have evolved over time, this study highlights the ways transnational public audit institutions, such as the ECA, construct their actorhood and position themselves on the public stage. It further reveals the underlying legitimacy mechanisms through which organisations such as the ECA position themselves in the public eye.Originality/valueThis study sheds light on the depiction of individuals and their contexts in interaction with each other and how this interaction reveals the development of the actorhood journey of the ECA over time.
1 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined how female and male business leaders have been represented in newspaper photographs through quantitative and qualitative textual analyses, and found that women were portrayed as passive objects artificially posed for the news in a context separated from their business, and often in full length shots.
Abstract: News plays a similar role with myths in modern society. Myths provide the framework from which people understand and experience the world, and news media plays an important role in constructing these myths. In this context, this study examined how female and male business leaders have been represented in newspaper photographs through quantitative and qualitative textual analyses. Photographs of female business leaders which appeared in news interviews and profile news stories from 1990 to 2011 were analyzed, and photographs of male leaders corresponding to the total number of female photographs were also investigated. As a result, gender perspectives were found. While male business leaders were portrayed as active and serious figures in connection with their professional work places, mostly in bust shots, female business leaders were represented as passive objects artificially posed for the news in a context separated from their business, and often in full length shots.
1 citations
01 Jan 2014
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a scale to measure Social Distance in photographs and compared 300 photographs of a political leader from a high social power culture (Gaddafi from Libya) with 300 photographs from a low Social Power Culture (Obama from the United States).
Abstract: The fact that a particular photograph appears in news media, can be seen as the result of collective rhetorical work done by spin doctors, photographers, journalists and editors. The central idea of this paper is that rhetorical means used in these photographs can be explained by the concept of Social Distance. We developed a scale to measure Social Distance in photographs and compared 300 photographs of a political leader from a High Social Power Culture (Gaddafi from Libya) with 300 photographs of a political leader from a low Social Power Culture (Obama from the United States). Results show that the use of rhetorical means such as point of view, facial expression, et cetera, can be explained from a model based on increasing or decreasing Social Distance. The developed scale produced the predicted differences between the two collections of photographs.
1 citations
Cites methods from "[In]visible [in]tangibles: Visual p..."
...Or, to use Davison’s words: “Group portraiture is a deliberate construction of the significance of an individual’s relations with others …” (Davison 2010)....
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01 Jan 2015
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the differences in use of impression management tactics of men and women and whether this has an impact on a female's career advancement and conclude that stereotypes have been built on this.
Abstract: In business and popular culture in recent years there has been a focus on physical appearance, image development, personal branding, leadership and communication styles with an emphasis on people becoming brands in themselves. Since 2000, corporations including entertainment corporations, political parties and managers of celebrities and athletes have recognised the importance of image and monitor how their performance is perceived by the public. Leaders engage publicists, are coached by media and communication experts and are stage managed in media performance because impressions are formed in response to what people see and hear. Judgements made are dependent on verbal and non-verbal behaviours such as body language, vocal pitch and tone, physical presentation and capability. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the differences in use of impression management tactics of men and women and whether this has an impact on a female's career advancement. Previous studies have found that males and females use different tactics of impression management and communicate differently. Stereotypes have been built on this. Romantic-comedy films, situation-comedies and television advertisements are developed on archetypes and stereotypes of male and female differences. With stereotypes holding great influence in society at large it is not surprising these views are observed in the workplace. This may influence how females are portrayed in the workplace.
1 citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, it is argued that the degree of overlap of two individuals' friendship networks varies directly with the strength of their tie to one another, and the impact of this principle on diffusion of influence and information, mobility opportunity, and community organization is explored.
Abstract: Analysis of social networks is suggested as a tool for linking micro and macro levels of sociological theory. The procedure is illustrated by elaboration of the macro implications of one aspect of small-scale interaction: the strength of dyadic ties. It is argued that the degree of overlap of two individuals' friendship networks varies directly with the strength of their tie to one another. The impact of this principle on diffusion of influence and information, mobility opportunity, and community organization is explored. Stress is laid on the cohesive power of weak ties. Most network models deal, implicitly, with strong ties, thus confining their applicability to small, well-defined groups. Emphasis on weak ties lends itself to discussion of relations between groups and to analysis of segments of social structure not easily defined in terms of primary groups.
37,560 citations
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01 Jan 1974TL;DR: The authors described three heuristics that are employed in making judgements under uncertainty: representativeness, availability of instances or scenarios, and adjustment from an anchor, which is usually employed in numerical prediction when a relevant value is available.
Abstract: This article described three heuristics that are employed in making judgements under uncertainty: (i) representativeness, which is usually employed when people are asked to judge the probability that an object or event A belongs to class or process B; (ii) availability of instances or scenarios, which is often employed when people are asked to assess the frequency of a class or the plausibility of a particular development; and (iii) adjustment from an anchor, which is usually employed in numerical prediction when a relevant value is available. These heuristics are highly economical and usually effective, but they lead to systematic and predictable errors. A better understanding of these heuristics and of the biases to which they lead could improve judgements and decisions in situations of uncertainty.
31,082 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors draw upon previous research conducted in the different social science disciplines and applied fields of business to create a conceptual framework for the field of entrepreneurship, and predict a set of outcomes not explained or predicted by conceptual frameworks already in existence in other fields.
Abstract: To date, the phenomenon of entrepreneurship has lacked a conceptual framework. In this note we draw upon previous research conducted in the different social science disciplines and applied fields of business to create a conceptual framework for the field. With this framework we explain a set of empirical phenomena and predict a set of outcomes not explained or predicted by conceptual frameworks already in existence in other fields.
11,161 citations
Book•
21 Feb 1986
TL;DR: The first handbook on the sociology of education as discussed by the authors synthesizes major advances in education over the past several decades, incorporating both a systematic review of significant theoretical and empirical work and challenging original contributions by distinguished American, English, and French sociologists.
Abstract: The first of its kind, this handbook synthesizes major advances in the sociology of education over the past several decades. It incorporates both a systematic review of significant theoretical and empirical work and challenging original contributions by distinguished American, English, and French sociologists. In his introduction, John G. Richardson traces the development of the sociology of education and reviews the important classical European works in which this discipline is grounded. Each chapter, devoted to a major topic in the field, provides both a review of the literature and an exposition of an original thesis. The inclusion of subjects outside traditional sociological concern--such as the historical foundations of education and the sociology of special education--gives an interdisciplinary scope that enhances the volume's usefulness.
7,071 citations
Book•
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors make a connection between the mind-body problem and the so-called "identity thesis" in analytic philosophy, which has wide-ranging implications for other problems in philosophy that traditionally might be thought far-removed.
Abstract: I hope that some people see some connection between the two topics in the title. If not, anyway, such connections will be developed in the course of these talks. Furthermore, because of the use of tools involving reference and necessity in analytic philosophy today, our views on these topics really have wide-ranging implications for other problems in philosophy that traditionally might be thought far-removed, like arguments over the mind-body problem or the so-called ‘identity thesis’. Materialism, in this form, often now gets involved in very intricate ways in questions about what is necessary or contingent in identity of properties — questions like that. So, it is really very important to philosophers who may want to work in many domains to get clear about these concepts. Maybe I will say something about the mind-body problem in the course of these talks. I want to talk also at some point (I don’t know if I can get it in) about substances and natural kinds.
5,988 citations